One Piece Advanced
by MaxirMusic
Summary: AU within One Piece Universe. Smart, Dark, alternate Luffy. Requested by a friendly reviewer in another fic. LuRo
1. Chapter 1: The Fall

**Hello. Been a while. Some little background that you'll need. This is an AU within the One Piece universe. You'll find out more later, but the mysterious man IS ?. Ha, figure it out. Same amount of letters as the name. You'll get more about him, his abilities, and other stuff when the team gets together. Things will take a little while to get long, the first couple chapters are gonna be short, because they're snippets from earlier in his life. **

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He remembered hitting. The flood of air through his hair, the roar of it in his ears, and the and the ground rushing up towards him was very present, but he only remembered that partially. The images were broken, jumbled. He did remember hitting, though. It wasn't something he'd forget soon. The initial crash was mind-crushingly painful, and then the bounce. He remembered that he couldn't move, but then was lost as to how long he had been asleep. He was mostly healed now, just a few more ribs, a few more bones in his legs to go. He braced himself against the tree, as his legs snapped and cracked, shifting themselves back into their proper position. It was almost as painful, when they stitched themselves back together, as when they broke apart. He really must do it slower, but he didn't have time.

He waited, for what seemed like hours, but must only have been a few seconds, as his ribs popped and thumped. When it was finally over he stood, and swayed, feeling all of his energy drain away. He wished that he hadn't decided to try and help. He should have done his job, and walked away. But, he had always been soft. It wasn't a good thing, when you were as he was, to be soft when doing your job. You can't try to help the people you're are supposed to be taking to the ferry. But, when the child had screamed, he hadn't thought twice about dropping his glamour, and rushing to the small things aid. He had always been fond of animals, and he supposed that was why he was so protective of the werewolves. He didn't want them to die. It seemed cruel.

He looked up, as soon as his nausea had passed, and stared first at the cliff he had been forced off of, tired and spent, then at the stars. He wondered if that young child had managed to escape. But, as usual, whenever his mind strayed too far for too long, his duties dragged themselves to the forefront, reminding him that he had work to do. He sighed, wishing that he had not taken the hand of his master, but instead had chosen to walk away, as he had deliberated. Maybe, just maybe, this was a sign that he should take on a small one, to help him, to train, to eventually entrust with the most important job of all.

But not yet, no, not yet. He had some time left, some power to expend. He would worry about taking an apprentice later.

For now, though, he had work to do. Death is never idle, not when there is work to be done.


	2. Chapter 2: Finding Her

**I love you guys. Two in the same day. More background. The girl IS ? You should know her name if you figured out the name of the man. Same number of letters as her name. If you guess, you can give me an adventure arc. **

**Enjoy!**

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This time was different.

He could feel it, something was wrong. He didn't know why, something just was.

The girl was dying, yes. But… she didn't feel like she were fading, as usual.

This meant one of two things, a bad thing, or a good thing. It could mean that someone had finally managed to overcome his wonderful virus, which would reflect badly on him at the council. He didn't want to deal with those stuck up little bastards. If he didn't value his peace and quiet when he returned home he would destroy them where they sat, on their high chairs. He also didn't have the time to judge every little soul that died.

It could also mean he was going to find, instead of having to look for, his apprentice much sooner than he thought. That outcome would be…. interesting.

He stepped out of the doorway and walked over to the alleyway where the young girl was hiding, whimpering and clutching her wound.

He stopped at the halfway down the alleyway, incredulous, when the girl's head shot up and stared at him. She looked frightened, terrified even, but then her face opened up and she beamed.

He could feel the darkness, the death, pulsing and circling her, keeping her alive. He had learned he would have to awaken it, but now he discovered that he would gain an apprentice who had awakened herself. Interesting.

"It's you, isn't it? The one who saved me that time." He nodded.

"Thanks." He smiled, walking over.

"Are you going to do it again?" She looked apprehensive. Good, he didn't have to teach her to question things that seemed good. He realized she was waiting for an answer. Well, it would be a good opportunity to see if she spoke any useful languages.

"Sil fen grasne, itene pranr astu." She looked confused. He raised his hand to his face, sighing. Clearly not Draconic

"¿Hablas Español?" Again, she looked puzzled. No Spanish either.

"¿Parlez-vous français?" A third time. And no French.

"You only speak english?" He didn't like that language, but if it was all she spoke….. He'd make it work.

"Yes, is that a problem?"

"No, it just means I have more to teach." He walked over to her and gently shifted her into his arms.

"Sleep now. We'll be there soon." She fell asleep immediately, overtired, without even asking where they were going. The doorway opened, and he walked into it, and was lost to the world.


End file.
